Elpida will list in the form of Taiwan Depositary Receipts (TDRs), which represent the common shares of the DRAM company. The company hopes to raise $150 million, according to reports.

Citing stagnant demand for PC DRAMs due to sluggish PC shipments,Japan's Elpida Memory recently reported a net loss of 29.6 billion yen ($363.1 million). According to reports, the loss was Elpida's first in five quarters.

Elpida has deep ties in Taiwan. Taiwan's Powerchip Technology Corp. has recently exited the DRAM market, andtransferred the business over to Japan's Elpida Memory Inc.

Previously, Elpida had a foundry agreement with Powerchip for DRAMs and purchases half of what Powerchip manufactures at their fabs in Hsinchu, Taiwan. Elpida also has a majority stake in Taiwan DRAM maker Rexchip Electronics Corp.

The race toship 30-nm-class DRAMshas begun and Samsung Electronics Co. Ltd. has taken the early lead. Elpida, Hynix and Micron are also in the hunt. The 30-nm DRAM race is starting at a time when the market is slowing-if not collapsing, according to a new report from VLSI Research Inc.

I think Elpida is hoping that by staying focused on DRAMs while Micron and Samsung and Hynix are distracted by NAND and other NVMs, it can pull ahead. I also think Elpida is trying to do some consolidation of Taiwan memory companies on its own; this proposal met some domestic resistance a few years ago, why would it be accepted now from a foreign company?